BIO
Dave Lytle is Deputy Chief of USFS Research and Development. As the agency’s leading scientist, Dave directs, coordinates, and integrates the vast network of all research activities, working with regions, stations, and many others on a variety of activities. Dave helps to ensure the agency’s data, scientific information, and innovation support forest and rangeland conservation and management. This work relies on effective collaboration with other deputy areas, stations, regions, and a broad network of other land management agencies, partners, and stakeholders.
The agency’s scientific work provides the US with valuable economic, health and environmental benefits through the work executed by nearly 1,000 employees, including 450 research scientists working in five research stations, two institutes, one urban field station and on 81 experimental forests. The results are more than 59,000 peer-reviewed publications and more than 700 data sets, all of which are available to the public.
Dave has been in federal service for over 15 years, starting as a post-doctoral research ecologist with the North Central Research Station, and spent a decade as a science center director for the US Geological Survey, in the US Department of the Interior. Dave also served as state forester and chief of the Division of Forestry, with the OH Department of Natural Resources. He also worked as a conservation scientist with The Nature Conservancy.
Dave is a Sherburn, MN, native. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Macalester College in St. Paul, and a master’s degree in Botany and Plant Pathology from the University of MA. He has a doctorate in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior from the University of MN.